Immigration reform supporters see missed opportunity

WASHINGTON — For a while, supporters allowed themselves to believe this just might be the year when Congress finally passes comprehensive immigration reform into law.

But once again, immigration reform will have to wait.

House Speaker John Boehner signaled again last week that he has no plans to call for a vote on a Senate-approved immigration reform bill that, among other things, would provide a pathway to citizenship for migrants who are living in the country illegally. Boehner’s decision means that, for all practical purposes, immigration reform is dead for this year.

The news is bitterly disappointing to immigration-rights groups and others who have been fighting for years for comprehensive reform, even though Boehner suggested the House could tackle immigration reform next year in a piecemeal fashion instead of through the kind of comprehensive legislation preferred by many activists.

For Hispanics, the House’s inaction on comprehensive reform amounts to just “more of the same” and is exactly what many in California’s Latino community have come to expect, said David Rodriguez, state vice president of the League of United Latin American Citizens.

“The Republican Party doesn’t get it,” said Rodriguez, who lives in Camarillo. “We don’t see anything coming out of the Republican-controlled House that is productive and answers the concerns of the community.”

In the long run, what’s important is that immigration reform is passed, regardless of whether it’s done one piece at a time or in one sweeping bill, said Giev Kashkooli, national vice president of United Farm Workers of America.

But the problem with a piecemeal approach is that while some important components of reform may get approved, others could be pushed aside, Kashkooli said.

“This notion of piecemeal is fine if you’ve got a whole meal,” Kashkooli said. “But you wouldn’t just serve desserts or salad at a meal.”

Just last summer, immigration-reform advocates were convinced that momentum was on their side.

Public opinion polls showed that a majority of Americans supported reform. A broad coalition of groups, representing everyone from agriculture interests to business groups to religious organizations, had backed comprehensive legislation. And in June, the Democratic-controlled Senate, in a solid 68-to-32 vote, approved a sweeping immigration reform bill that tightened border security and provided a 13-year pathway to citizenship for the 11 million immigrants who are in the country illegally.

While the bill’s backers knew the real challenge lay ahead in the GOP-led House, they had hoped the decisive victory in the often-divided Senate would put pressure on the House to act.

But the House was not swayed. Now, some immigration-reform supporters fear the opportunity to enact significant change may be lost.

“I think it’s tragic if that is the case,” said Rep. Julia Brownley, a Westlake Village Democrat. “We have, I think, very clearly a unique coalition around comprehensive immigration reform. I am of the belief that if this bill were put on the floor today, it would pass. It’s good for Ventura County. It’s good for our country. It’s good for the economy. It’s good for jobs.”

Rep. Lois Capps, a Santa Barbara Democrat, said getting immigration legislation through Congress next year could be problematic because the entire House and one-third of the Senate will be up for re-election.

“That is why the momentum is now,” Capps said. “There is bipartisan support. We believe we could pass this legislation in a comprehensive way now, and that is why I am arguing for the speaker to bring this bill to the floor.”

While Capps would prefer one comprehensive piece of legislation instead of breaking the reforms up into parts, “as long as all of the pieces are passed, I’m not going to quibble over that,” she said. But, “it’s really like a jigsaw puzzle. If one piece is taken out, it doesn’t work. Since we have the momentum, this is the time to do comprehensive reform.”

Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon, a Santa Clarita Republican, said immigration reform should have been “at the forefront of our agenda this year” but instead has become “the latest fatality of a highly dysfunctional Washington.” He placed the blame squarely on Democrats.

“I am frustrated at the lack of leadership coming from the White House and the constant lack of cooperation on behalf of the Senate,” McKeon said. “It has left us reeling in a perpetual state of governing from crisis to crisis, and it’s our country and the people that end up on the losing end.”

Meanwhile, some groups are still holding out hope the House will act this year. Noting that there still is more than a month left this year, immigrant farm workers, labor leaders and others started a “Do Your Job” campaign last week to pressure the House to proceed.

As a send-off to the House before its one-week Thanksgiving vacation, activists showed up at Boehner’s office last week with a turkey and a bottle of immigrant-harvested merlot, reportedly his favorite. But the office was locked, so the protesters left the turkey just outside his door. The bottle of wine went undelivered since it’s unwise to leave liquids lying around the Capitol.